To construe something means to interpret or understand it in a particular way. When you construe someone's words or actions, you're deciding what they mean or what the person intended.

Imagine a friend says “nice job” after you give a presentation. You might construe that as genuine praise, or you might construe it as sarcasm, depending on their tone and expression. The same words can be construed differently by different people.

Teachers often remind students not to misconstrue instructions, which means not to misunderstand or misinterpret them. If your teacher says “feel free to use extra paper,” you shouldn't construe that as permission to waste paper or make paper airplanes. You're meant to construe it as “If you need more space for your work, that's fine.”

The word often appears in more formal contexts. A lawyer might argue that a law should be construed in a certain way, meaning interpreted to mean something specific. When a contract says it will be “construed according to state law,” it means the words will be understood and interpreted using that state's rules.

How you construe something matters because it affects how you respond. Construing criticism as an attack might make you defensive, while construing it as helpful feedback might help you improve.